Economy
From The Report: Gabon 2013
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The past 40 years of oil production have turned this small but strategically positioned Central African state into an upper middle-income economy. The country’s extractive industries are sizeable by global standards, with oil, timber and manganese being key exports. Following the 2008-09 financial crisis, GDP growth provided evidence of a recovery, reaching 7% in 2011 and 5% in 2012, according to the African Development Bank. With a current account and fiscal position persistently in surplus, Gabon has the resources to realise its ambitious public investment plans. The issue will be in balancing its books, namely the non-oil fiscal deficit, and in streamlining its regulatory framework to attract the private investment necessary to finance the target figure of 72% of investments planned by 2025.

This chapter contains interviews with Magloire Ngambia, Minister of Investment Promotion, Public Works, Transport, Housing and Tourism; Henri-Claude Oyima, Director and Chairman, BGFI Bank; Nina Abouna, Director-General, Agency for the Promotion of Investment and Exports (APIEX); Yves Fernand Manfoumbi, Director-General of the Budget; and Richard Attias, Executive Chairman, Richard Attias & Associates.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Growth through diversification: Demand for manganese and timber draw international interest
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The past 40 years of oil production have turned this small but strategically positioned Central African state into an upper middle-income economy. Although figures can vary noticeably, with a GDP per capita in 2012 estimated at $9000 by the Banque des États de l'Afrique Centrale and $12,000 by the IMF, the nation is roughly on a par with Turkey and Argentina. The second-biggest economy of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (Communauté Économique et Monétaire de l'Afrique…

Interview

OBG talks to Magloire Ngambia, Minister of Investment Promotion, Public Works, Transport, Housing and Tourism
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Interview:Magloire Ngambia What can be done to encourage foreign direct investment (FDI) and foster long-term growth? MAGLORIE NGAMBIA: Reducing poverty and increasing prosperity remain priority objectives, and thankfully sub-Saharan Africa has good economic potential. Today, many countries are diversifying their economic partners. South-south trade patterns are increasing, and we can observe growing trade between Gabon and emerging economies like Brazil, India and China. Gabon needs to…

Interview

OBG talks to Magloire Ngambia, Minister of Investment Promotion, Public Works, Transport, Housing and Tourism
OBG
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Interview:Magloire Ngambia What can be done to encourage foreign direct investment (FDI) and foster long-term growth? MAGLORIE NGAMBIA: Reducing poverty and increasing prosperity remain priority objectives, and thankfully sub-Saharan Africa has good economic potential. Today, many countries are diversifying their economic partners. South-south trade patterns are increasing, and we can observe growing trade between Gabon and emerging economies like Brazil, India and China. Gabon needs to…

Interview

OBG talks to Henri-Claude Oyima, Director and Chairman, BGFI Bank
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Interview:Henri-Claude Oyima How can interest rates be lowered to aid funding to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)? HENRI-CLAUDE OYIMA: To fix the interest rate attributed to companies, including SMEs, banks base their evaluation on two criteria: the cost to access their own resources and the risk linked to project financing. Unfortunately, both of these factors remain rather high in emerging markets. With respect to financial resources, collection of deposits is expensive and still…

Analysis

Strengthening fiscal policy: New reforms aim to improve the management of funds
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Expansionary and targeted fiscal policy will be key to realising Gabon’s economic diversification plan. As the state’s balance sheet expands, the administration aims to control already large recurrent spending as it sustains high public investments in infrastructure and development. In 2013 Gabon’s budget expanded spending 28% on the year before, at CFA3.14trn (€4.71bn), with a 7.6% budget deficit, or 2.3% of GDP. Supported by multilateral organisations like the World Bank, the EU and…

Interview

OBG talks to Nina Abouna, Director-General, Agency for the Promotion of Investment and Exports (APIEX)
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Interview:Nina Abouna How can non-traditional sources of financing facilitate infrastructure project implementation? NINA ABOUNA: Infrastructure financing, especially for transport, water, energy and communication networks, requires tremendous capital investments. Currently, these projects are often financed by the government, in large part by the revenues generated by the energy sector. Nevertheless, one should not forget that there are a many ways to finance infrastructure projects, including…

Interview

OBG talks to Nina Abouna, Director-General, Agency for the Promotion of Investment and Exports (APIEX)
OBG
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Interview:Nina Abouna How can non-traditional sources of financing facilitate infrastructure project implementation? NINA ABOUNA: Infrastructure financing, especially for transport, water, energy and communication networks, requires tremendous capital investments. Currently, these projects are often financed by the government, in large part by the revenues generated by the energy sector. Nevertheless, one should not forget that there are a many ways to finance infrastructure projects, including…

Analysis

Pricing Emerging Gabon: Non-traditional sources of financing are supporting necessary infrastructure work
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Setting forth an ambitious infrastructure development plan expected to require some CFA17trn (€25.5bn) in investment by 2025, Gabon’s government expects public investment to cover a sizeable share of this – roughly 30%. Support from multilateral agencies, traditional investors and new foreign direct investment (FDI) – either in partnership with the state in a public-private partnership or standalone – is expected to help Gabon achieve its ambitions. Given the relatively centralised…

Analysis

Framework for public tenders: A procurement agency is expected to increase project efficiency
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In light of the dramatic increase in government spending since 2009, authorities in Gabon have recently moved to create the Public Procurement Regulatory Agency (Agence de Régulation des Marchés Publics, ARMP), which will be tasked with overseeing and streamlining procurement. In a region where bidding for public contracts can be a protracted affair, the ARMP is expected to assist the government in setting policy and regulations on public procurement, develop sector training mechanisms, implement…

Interview

OBG talks to Yves Fernand Manfoumbi, Director-General of the Budget
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Interview:Yves Fernand Manfoumbi What sort of budgetary reforms have been put in place to improve fiscal indicators? YVES FERNAND MANFOUMBI: To improve our management of public finances, the government has put in place several tools for budgetary reform. We have also adopted the Law on Finances and Budget Execution (LOLFEB), the elaboration of the medium-term spending framework at both the sectoral and institutional levels, and repositioned the financial affairs division as an autonomous…

Interview

OBG talks to Richard Attias, Executive Chairman, Richard Attias & Associates; and Founder, New York Forum Africa
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Interview:Richard Attias What are the most common opportunities and risks connected with foreign direct investments into sub-Saharan economies? RICHARD ATTIAS: Driven by strong demographic growth and the rise of a middle-income class, Africa is a continent under construction. Thus, businesses flourish abundantly, and many opportunities are to be seized in key sectors like infrastructure development, information and communication technology, agriculture, and services for consumers. Ultimately,…